Establishing a joint operations room to control the fires in Latakia.

The Ministry of Emergencies and Disasters announced today, Friday, the formation of a joint operations room with the Ministries of Agriculture, Defense, and Interior, to control the fires raging in the forests of the Rabia area in the countryside of Latakia for the third consecutive day. According to SANA, Assistant Minister of Emergencies and Disasters, Dr. Hussam Hallaq, stated that the civil defense teams responded to the fire from the early hours, started extinguishing operations to contain its spread. Due to the significant challenges facing the firefighting teams, the mentioned operations room was formed to mobilize all efforts and expedite fire control operations. Hallaq mentioned that coordination is ongoing with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in preparation to request assistance from Turkey if the fire spreads to larger areas and requires helicopter support for extinguishing, due to the difficult terrain of the region. He confirmed that the Turkish Ambassador in Damascus, Dr. Bahran Kourouglu, expressed readiness for assistance during a call with the Minister of Emergencies and Disasters, Raed Saleh. The civil defense, through its Telegram channel, explained that its firefighting teams, along with the Latakia Firefighting Regiment, are facing significant challenges and difficulties for the third consecutive day in controlling the fires in the forests of the Sukkaria area in Jabal Turkman in the countryside of Latakia. The civil defense pointed out that the teams are struggling due to the difficult terrain of the area and the absence of ready fire lines to limit the fire's expansion.